Thank You for Making Our Mental Health Awareness Month Event a Huge Success!

What an incredible evening we had at Old Mine Park on Monday, May 19th! Over 350 Trumbull residents came together to celebrate Mental Health Awareness Month through laughter, connection, and play at our community-wide event hosted by the Mary J. Sherlach Counseling Center and the amazing student leaders of SLAM (Students Leaving a Mark).

With perfect weather, the park was filled with joy and energy for people of all ages. Families enjoyed sweet treats like free ice cream, cotton candy, and popcorn, danced to music from a live DJ, and participated in fun games and interactive activities designed to promote teamwork, communication, and mental wellness. The event truly captured the spirit of community and highlighted the importance of strengthening our families and friendships through shared experiences.

We are especially proud of the SLAM youth leaders, who envisioned and organized this event as part of their ongoing mission to promote mental health awareness, leadership, and inclusivity within our town. Their creativity, dedication, and compassion were at the heart of this success, and we are inspired by their continued efforts to make a positive impact in Trumbull.

A heartfelt thank you to our community partners who joined us and supported this initiative. Your involvement is a powerful reminder that we are stronger when we come together.

We’re already looking forward to next year and building on this momentum to create even more opportunities for connection, support, and fun. Until then, let’s carry the spirit of this event forward—supporting each other, leading with kindness, and making mental wellness a shared priority.

SLAM will be holding a Battle of the Bands in July, stay tuned for details and to learn more about SLAM or the Mary J. Sherlach Counseling Center, please contact the Counseling Center at (203) 452-5193.

How do I find LGBTQ-friendly therapy?

Not all therapists are equally knowledgeable or affirming of LGBTQ+ issues. Luckily, the internet has made it easy to do a lot of research on potential therapists before making an appointment.

One of the best and easiest ways to find LGBTQ-friendly therapy is online through a search engine like Mental Health Match or Psychology Today. These are tools that offer several different filters including insurance, gender identity, sexual orientation, transgender support and more. You will find therapists in your area who specialize and have experience working with LGBTQ clients. Each therapist has their own profile with an about section where you can learn more about them and their practice. Find qualifications, specialties, treatment approach, client focus, issues, and financial information as well as contact information all on their page.

The Human Rights Campaign partnered with us to develop a tool to help you determine whether your therapist will be responsive to your LGBTQ+ identity—especially if you are also a person of color.

When looking for LGBTQ-friendly therapy, there are two areas to pay attention to:

Client focus and specialties: Look for a therapist whose specialties reflect you and your needs. Consider clicking more or less areas of specialties to focus in on what you want to address in treatment and to get a longer or shorter list.
Do additional research: You can learn a lot about therapists based on what they put online. Start with the profile to help narrow your search and then continue research online. Find out what makes each therapist unique and who may resonate with you. Along with finding therapist that explicitly talk about LGBTQ-related issues or even the specific issue you’re hoping to work through, look for other qualities that you think will help with the relationship. Ultimately, if this looks like a person you can trust, that’s a great start.

Most therapists will do a 15-20-minute phone interview so you can see if they are a good fit. Be sure and ask questions about any information you didn’t see on the web such as insurance and payment information, their qualifications, approach to helping and anything else you are curious about. Ask them about their training, knowledge and experience in working with the LGBTQ+ population. If you have questions about a specific issue now is the time to ask.

Additionally, some therapists run group therapy sessions for specific communities and issues. For example, one such page lists “group therapy for gay men.” Check for groups to find community and support from other people going through the same things as you.

If you aren’t having any luck finding an LGBTQ-affirming therapist near you, look for a distance therapy option. Some therapists offer their through the phone or online video support. See if there is a LGBTQ+ community center in your area that can point you in the right direction.